Eating wood?

[Bri]

Have noticed neddy has started chewing the wood in her stable and in the field. The fact that she's doing it while she's out as well suggests its not hunger or boredom...
Any suggestions as to how to make her stop? Or should I just not worry about it? Thanks!

 

[katiebaybee]

My pony does it all the time and chews the paint off the walls

I have never thought anything of it

 

[xxcharlottexx]

I will be interested to hear people opinions as mine is doing a similar thing. To match his girraffe neck, I have caught him on several occasions eating trees (branches and all!)

Ive never really worried about it and think he just likes the taste.

suppose it could pose a problem if shes chewing her stable apart... how about putting some of that anti-crib thing wherever she is chewing?

 

[Paint it Lucky]

Possibly if the field is just of grass and no other plants she may be bored with this and chew the wood just for a different taste. Normally I would say horses start chewing wood because they don't have enough food, in this case if the grass is quite young/short it may be she is not getting enough fibre so chews wood to try and compensate. Does she get much hay to eat at all? Also with the tree eating the horse is probably looking for nutrients that aren't available in the grass. It isn't really a worry just consider whether the horse is getting a balanced diet and enough fibre to eat.

 

[Forget_Me_Not]

Fibre...I think horses like to munch on things other then grass....all mine taste bushes, trees, neetles what evers going.

 

[mitchellk]

I have limited grazing esp in winter and Bert chews the fencing, his is a total boredom thing as when there is grass he keeps his head down and leaves the fencing alone.
Forgot to ad he had adlib hay in field all winter- the sod!

 

[Shilasdair]

Lack of fibre...they evolved to eat high fibre diets (originally much more scrub land stuff than lush grass).
If you can feed something like High Fibre Haylage, or straw, maybe old hay (not mouldy though) it can help with your horses' chewing fibre urges.
S

 

[eekmon]

Well my old man does it and has done for years! ( hes 30 now ) He has loads of fibre in his diet, is turned out in a field with hedges and trees on three sides , is not bored, ( still ridden 4-5 times a week) I don't know why he does it

As far as I am concerned when all the reasons for horses chewing wood come up he never falls into any of the catogaries , so I just think its just a habit!! P.S he only chews one bit of wood just outside his box,nowhere else. He's lived in that stable best part of 20 years and hes still very much alive so don't worry too much

 

[Pidge]

Probably totally off the point, but Higgs used to chew the stable and fences terribly, turned out it was because he was in pain as had part of a wolf tooth still left in, which also explained why he leant very heavily on the left rein. Once this was sorted out he never chewed the stable or fences again. Are her teeth ok?

 

[AmyMay]

Horses just love to chew wood. Our lot are out on wonderful grazing - they still find the odd tree to nibble on......

 

[MagicMelon]

Ive been told its nothing to do with lack of fibre. Its natural, apparently horses do it in the wild all the time. Mine are all on high-fibre diets, have as much hay as they want and are turned out 24/7 yet they still chew the wooden fencing sometimes. I tend to put big branches (non poisonous obviously!) in the field which they love to strip the bark off! Seems to keep them off the fencing a bit too.

 

[Theresa_F]

I posted about this a few days ago - Chancer has taken to grabbing the log by his field or indeed anything wood to chew at.

Vet advised after a check up that it is probably a boredom thing - some horses don't find 24 x 7 grazing that exciting and to get him a log.

Have now spied a wonderful oak branch - with lots of bark and big enough to take the kicking it will receive - now have to get it down the bridleway to my field - hence my cunning plan to rope it to the western saddle and get Cairo to haul it back.

Will be the first time ever he has done what he was bred to do - logging. However, I have a sneaky suspicion that OH and I will end up roped in harness.

 

[Mellymoo1]

Bradley loves a chew on a bit of wood, not quite sure why but I cant say I'm worried about it. He does it while we're out hacking, coming in from the field and when hes in his stable. It hasn't done him any harm so far.